Owner Comments:
I acquired this coin on 2/28/2007.
Population 1 of 2480 as of 3/2007.
Nevada's official nickname is "The Silver State" due to the large deposit of silver . Another nickname is "The Sagebrush State," which is the state's flower. Hence, the two of those found their way on the reverse of the quarter in addition to Mustangs, mountains and rising sun.
On March 2, 1861, the Nevada Territory separated from the Utah territory and adopted its current name. Eight days prior to the presidential election of 1864, Nevada became the 36th state in the union. Statehood was rushed to the date of October 31 to help ensure Abraham Lincoln's reelection and post-Civil War Republican dominance in congress.
Over 87% of the state today is owned by the federal government. The primary reason for this is that homesteads were not permitted in large enough sizes to be viable in the arid conditions that prevail throughout desert Nevada.